Forum:Voice actor trivia to include Sci-fi roles.
Voting Support #As proposer Garhdo (talk) 11:19, July 17, 2014 (UTC) #100% agree. KaLowPet (talk) 13:29, July 17, 2014 (UTC) #Like the Fallout wiki, huh? Count me in. --Nord Ronnoc (talk) 02:44, July 18, 2014 (UTC) Neutral Oppose #Trandra (talk) 18:03, July 17, 2014 (UTC) #--Hawki (talk) 04:04, July 18, 2014 (UTC) #Against the current proposition but almost in favor of the principle. --DeldiRe (talk) 10:23, July 18, 2014 (UTC) #Elseweyr talk • 19:20:42, 2014-07-18 (UTC) Discussion The Mass Effect series is a sci-fi saga that takes many cues from great science fiction shows of the past, including among its voice cast many sci-fi veterans such as Marina Sirtis, Michael Dorn, Lance Henriksen, Armin Shimmerman, Tricia Helfer, Carrie-Anne Moss, Michael Hogan, Claudia Black, Adam Baldwin, and Dwight Schultz. Currently we allow a trivia note for the voice artist to show any other Bioware games they have appeared in, and whom they portray. This proposal, if successful would expand that note to also include starring or recurring roles in sci-fi television and film such as Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Farscape and the X-Files. Due to contention that has previously been placed on Keith David on this wiki over his role in the Halo franchise I propose we adhere to the stipulation that only Bioware game roles are trivia worthy, so for Keith David his role in Halo could not be mentioned, but his role in The Chronicles of Riddick could be. Garhdo (talk) 11:19, July 17, 2014 (UTC) :Voting against because I prefer the minimalism of the trivia sections we currently have. I believe your plan would lead to confusion, as holding television and film more important than video games is contraindicative on a wiki devoted to a franchise that is primarily based on a video game. Trandra (talk) 18:09, July 17, 2014 (UTC) ::Concerning trivia, I think it works best when it's kept to a minimum. Noting other Bioware games is something I can get behind, but otherwise a Wikipedia link should suffice. It keeps things focused, and saves editors from having to update an actor's bio every time they get a new role. However, if an actor makes a reference to playing another role and/or the devs themselves do, then I'm fine with noting it.--Hawki (talk) 04:04, July 18, 2014 (UTC) ::I see both your points, but when I see clear inspiration and shoutouts in Mass Effect from things like Star Trek, Galactica, Alien, Firefly, etc, I think its worth noting that some of the actors played major roles in those series. Garhdo (talk) 08:38, July 18, 2014 (UTC) :::I have the same concerns than Trandra and Hawki so I will have to vote against the current proposal. However I'm sure that there is others solution to display this content. I saw on several wiki a dedicated page for the actors, it could be a solution even if it would lead to a lots of new pages. This solution could also reduce the current Trivia as we could put the current info on another page. We could also create on single (or several) page for every actors (if possible). What do you think about it?--DeldiRe (talk) 10:22, July 18, 2014 (UTC) ::::(edit conflict) Except "clear inspiration" is in the eye of the beholder. Remember the debate over the rachni queen, as to whether it was referencing Aliens and/or Ender's Game? It's also a question of what's notable enough. Tricia Helfer voices EDI, and has (voice) acted in Battlestar Galactica, Tron, Ascension, Command and Conquer, Halo, and StarCraft, as far as sci-fi medias go. The problem with listing some of them as opposed to all is that what counts as a relevant reference is subjective, and the problem of listing all as opposed to some is that the list is long, and would only get longer as time goes on. ::::Believe me, I like spotting similarities. I've written oneshot crossovers based on similarities (usually tongue-in cheek). But IMO, with wikis having to be formal and impartial, there's just too much subjectivity in what counts as a bona fide reference unless it applies to real-world mythologies or whatnot, or in this case, a Bioware game (since it's not uncommon for companies to harken to themselves between series - Bungie, Insomniac, and Blizzard are examples off the top of my head). ::::As for voice actor pages, I'm fine with them for any wiki, as long as they remain focused on the actor/actress. To cite the Helfer example again, most of it would be focused on her time as EDI. While the subjectivity still remains as to what is relevant to mention, it does provide less of an issue in that a list can populate an otherwise sparse article, while the EDI page itself is in no need of a "Tricia list." ::::...suddenly I feel all dirty. 0_0--Hawki (talk) 10:32, July 18, 2014 (UTC) :::::I haven't seen such a debate, although the inspiration from Ender's Game on the rachni should be immediately clear to any who have read that novel. However in the case of Tricia Helfer this trivia note would only include her work in Tron and Galactica, as they are the only film/tv roles you listed. Those are also good roles to list, as they are both AI charcters similar to EDI. Michael Dorn's roles of Worf and Gatatog Uvenk are also similar, with alien characters motivated by an adherance to honor and tradidition. The idea is also not to list these references or comparisons in a glaring way. It would be saying that, for example: EDI's voice actress Tricia Helfer is also known for playing the role of Number Six in Battlestar: Galactica, and voicing the Grid in Tron: Uprising. Just a simple note, nothing more, similar to the trivia notes we already have (look at Commander Shepard for a good example). I think that because Mass Effect has bought in many of these famous television and film actors, many notable for sci-fi work, it is worth acknowledging that fact. The actors listed in my first paragraph are the only ones it applies to, so its not even as if such notes will overwhelm trivia sections. :::::As to the proposal of voice actor pages, I am all in favour of that as an alternative, especially as many VAs play multiple roles across the series, but that is a far greater list of work, and specifying what other roles an actor is known for on such a page would require a substantial policy change. Garhdo (talk) 11:09, July 18, 2014 (UTC) :::::::Ascension is TV sci-fi as well, but that aside, looking at the Shepard page, it seems to further validate the need for a voice actors category. It hardly necessitates a policy change, only the category and articles for it.--Hawki (talk) 11:44, July 18, 2014 (UTC)